Lost Wanderer Awakened - Book One of the Airendell Chronicles (16 page)

Jeez, how does he do that? Sneaking up on me,
disappearing before my eyes! Wow!

She dresses without giving any thought to
where the pajamas came from because she’s trying to remember
exactly what she did after she brushed her hair. “Damn! He saw me
give myself the once over in the mirror!” she hisses under her
breath.

Amazingly, she swears she hears him chuckle
softly in the kitchen. She is struck with the certainty that he can
hear her. Her face turns red again, but she refuses to be a coward.
She marches out of the bathroom into the bedroom. She snatches up
the bottle of flavored water and takes a big swig because her mouth
is suddenly very, very dry again. She lifts her head and squares
her shoulders and walks to the kitchen to face him.

When she gets there she is pleased to see
that he’s sitting at the kitchen table. He’s leaned back in a
kitchen chair with his right foot crossed over his left knee. His
hands are casually folded on his lap. He’s wearing gun-metal gray
silk pajama pants, and a pale blue A-shirt. He looks amazing! The
muscles in Morna’s belly clench, and she feels her body heating
again at the sight of him as her fingers itch to trace the hard
contours of his body. His bright blue eyes are so luminescent that
she wonders briefly, irrationally, if they would glow in the dark.
The red highlights are glistening in his hair under the kitchen
lights. He gestures expansively toward the table and says, “Won’t
you join me? Your dinner is getting cold.”

Deidra ignores the food and walks over to
him. He stands up and wraps his arms around her. “Did you rest
well, my Morna?”

“I haven’t slept this much since I came out
of the coma. What kind of magic are you working on me, Lucian
Michaels?” She cocks her head to one side looking at him, like
she’s trying to figure something out.

“Nothing special, baby. Just a little tender,
loving care.” He cups her face and kisses her nose. “Now please, my
Morna, eat! You haven‘t eaten a real meal in over twenty-four
hours.”

Deidra walks back over to the table and looks
at the aluminum foil take out containers. The largest is filled
with grilled chicken and Alfredo sauce tossed with linguine. A
smaller one contains a salad, while the smallest container holds
what looks like her favorite restaurant’s famous tiramisu. Hmmm,
all of her favorites from her favorite restaurant in the next
county. “You went to Bella’s?” He nods.

There’s also a bright green linen napkin and
silverware beside the food. Her stomach growls and she remembers
all she has eaten today has been a few bites of fruit at 7:00 a.m.
She looks at the kitchen clock and is shocked to see it’s now 8:00.
Once quick glance out the kitchen window confirms it’s
nighttime.

“Thank you Luca,” she gushes as she sits
down, moves her silverware to pick up the napkin and spread it
across her lap. Then she picks up a fork and tears into the salad.
She’s so hungry that she forgets to be self-conscious about eating
in front of him. She doesn’t even wonder why he’s not eating.

She is halfway through her salad before she
pauses to open her coke and pour it over the ice in the glass.
After taking two big drinks. She wipes her mouth with the napkin
and says, “I can’t believe I slept all day!”

“Well, it wasn’t all day exactly,” he drawls
happily. “It was almost one in the afternoon before you went back
to sleep.”

She nearly chokes on her salad. Then she
asks, “Really!?! We were… I mean… you… that long?”

“Yes, Morna,” he drawls again with a pleased
smile. He has resumed his seat and posture. He looks just like he
did when she entered the room. He’s wearing that lopsided grin she
loves and his eyes look like he’s ready to devour her whole.
Everything south of her waist does flip flops, and she crosses her
legs tightly and exhales slowly, trying to calm herself.

She meets his eyes and he’s looking at her
with a very, very knowing look on his face. There’s not a trace of
a smirk, nor any cockiness, just knowing. She smiles back at him,
tentatively before she returns her attention to her food. She’s
halfway through with her pasta when she pushes it back, feeling
full. She drinks a little more of the soda and then wipes her mouth
shyly with the napkin. Now that she is no longer ravenous, she’s a
little more insecure. She looks up at him and he crooks his finger
at her.

She gets up and walks around the table to
stand in front of him. He doesn’t move an inch, but his eyes follow
every move she makes. “How you feeling, baby?”

She moves his foot off his knee, and then
straddles his lap. She entwines her fingers behind his neck and
plants a quick kiss on his chilly lips. Then she remembers the
onions and peppers on the salad, she self-consciously covers her
mouth with her hand and starts to get up to go brush her teeth. His
arms wrap her in his solid embrace and she can’t move. “I’ll be
right back. I just want to brush my teeth,” she whispers.

He loosens his hold on her, “It’s not
necessary, Morna, but go ahead if it will make you more
comfortable,” he assures her.

“It would. I’ll be right back,” she promises
as she hops up and heads for the bathroom.

When she returns, he has cleared the table
except for her coke and the dessert and a fork. She shakes her head
in amazement because he looks like he hasn’t moved an inch since
she left to go to the bathroom. That’s odd.

She starts to sit in the chair next to him,
when he growls softly, and says, “Get back over here, woman.” His
grin and smoldering eyes belies the growl and tone. So, she steps
over to him and resumes her straddled position on his lap, and
smiles happily when he places his hands possessively on her hips,
caressing her ample flesh through the pajama pants.

This time, she is feeling more confident
after brushing her teeth and gives him a real kiss. She revels in
the ice cold hardness of his lips, the soft, bristly feel of his
whiskers. Her tongue traces his lips and she’s disappointed that he
doesn’t open them to allow her to deepen the kiss. But she is
nonetheless enjoying the fire this intimate contact kindles in her
belly. When he does part his lips slightly, she inhales deeply and
feels her head spin.

She pulls away regretfully and rests her head
on his shoulder with her face turned away from his strong neck so
that she can catch her breath. He rubs her back slowly, turns his
head to kiss the back of hers, and patiently allows her to set the
tone for the encounter. He promised her answers, but only to the
questions she asks directly. She has to be ready before she hears
the answers.

When some semblance of normalcy has returned
to her body, she raises her head and looks him in the eyes. Oh God,
those impossible blue eyes! She clears her throat and then says,
“Thank you for a beautiful day and a delicious dinner, but I think
you promised me some answers.”

“You know that I did, my beloved. I am simply
waiting for your questions,” he drawls lazily. His demeanor calm.
“You want to stay like this or move into the living room?” he
asks.

She smiles wickedly before giggling like a
girl, and then squirming on his lap. She’s delighted to see a
heated look come into his eyes. She giggles again as she gently
presses her core against his obvious erection. She kisses his neck
softly and says, “I think I better move, don’t you? Or I may forget
my questions.” She sighs and whispers; “Oh what I could do with you
sitting here like this.”

He grunts in agreement, and the next thing
she knows, she is sitting on the sofa and he is sitting on the
heavy coffee table in front of her with an expectant look on his
face. “How’s this?” he asks. He leans forward and puts his hands on
her knees.

“Perfect,” she whispers. How the hell does he
do that? She starts to feel panic rising in herself. Where to
start? How do I admit what I suspect?

As though he has read her mind he says, “Why
don’t you ask the question I just saw in your eyes?”

“Okay… how did we get over here so fast?” she
asks softly.

“I’m very, very fast,” he says. He smiles
reassuringly at her, encouraging her to ask him anything.

“And strong!” she mumbles. He has lifted her
one hundred and eighty pounds on several occasions like it was
nothing.

“Yes, that too,” he agrees with a small
smile.

“Okay… how can you stay in the same position
for so long without moving?” she asks.

“I am patient. My body never aches from
staying in the same position. I could hold the same pose for hours
or days without moving, without feeling any pain or
discomfort.”

“Wow! Okay, okay… let me think… you are very
pale, and your entire body from head to toe is rock hard.
Sometimes, you feel as cold as ice when I touch you. And I have
never seen you sleep, ever. I have crashed on your couch a few
times, and you never seem to sleep when I am here.”

“All those things are true,” he easily
confirms. He’s having fun with this little question and almost
answer session.

“I’ve never seen you eat anything until that
strawberry this morning,” she says breathlessly.

“True,” he acknowledges.

“Okay, I think I have known for a couple of
weeks, at least, but I need you to confirm it for me. Okay?” She
leans forward and gently strokes his face with her fingertips. She
looks into his eyes, seeking her answers there before she voices
her next question.

“Go ahead, Morna. You can ask me anything.
You have nothing to fear from me, ever,” he says calmly, radiating
reassurance.

She kneels before him and kisses him
passionately. She places her hands on both sides of his face, and
then inhales deeply before taking the plunge off the deep end of
her sanity and saying, “I know that you are not an ordinary human.
So, what are you?”

“Very direct! Beautiful! That’s my girl!” he
chuckles and kisses her lips gently. And then he gets serious. He
almost looks afraid now. It’s his turn to take a deep breath and
exhale slowly. “Morna, I am a vampire,” he says quietly, as he
lovingly strokes her cheek with his fingertips.

Morna stills at his answer, but doesn‘t try
to move away from him. “But you hunt animals not people, right?”
she asks without any hesitation, not sure how she knows this.

“That’s right,” he answers with a small,
strained smile.

“So that’s why I have dreams about you
stalking cougars in the wild?” she squeaks.

He chuckles again. “Yes baby, I suppose it
is.”

“How do I know that?” she asks.

“Once, a very, very long time ago, I
mind-shared a hunt with you. I guess on some level you still
remember it,” he shrugs.

“Mind share? Oh well, never mind that, for
now.” She remains seated on the sofa and absorbs what she’s learned
so far, and then asks, “About… uh… your vampire status,” she
whispers. “You have never hunted a human, right?”

“No, my Morna, never,” He assures her
quietly.

“So I don’t have to be afraid of you.” It
wasn‘t a question, but a statement.

“Well, you probably should be. Baby, I could
easily hurt you because you trust me so much and never take
precautions to protect yourself. But I will never hurt you, my
beloved.” Lucian promises her fervently. “You are my whole
world.”

“I know that,” she says confidently, and
leans forward, cups his face and kisses him quickly. Then she pulls
her hands back and looks down at them.

“You haven’t always been a vampire though,
have you?” She asks timidly.

“No. Once, a very, very long time ago I was
just like you,” he whispers, as he gently strokes her face with his
fingertips.

“Like me? You mean a mere mortal, right?” she
whispers.

“Not a mere mortal,” he states. He’s shaking
his head gently with a playful, knowing look on his face.

She’s silent for a full minute, then asks, “I
am not mortal?”

In response, he shakes his head no. “No, not
exactly,” he says quietly.

She’s silent for another minute. “But I am
not a vampire. I know that. So how can I be… not mortal?” she
squeaks.

He takes a deep breath, stalling while he
gauges how much he thinks she can handle at once. He decides she is
ready. “Do you want me to tell you about our original life
together? Are you ready for the truth, my beloved?”

She looks away and stares out the window at
the nighttime sky for a few seconds, and then forces herself to
meet his gaze, “Do I want to know? I know there‘s more to us than
the obvious. I mean I have these… memories… But maybe they are just
fantasies.”

She closes her eyes for a moment to calm her
racing heart. She opens her eyes and smiles at the eager look on
his face. “Luca, do I want to know about our original life
together?” she wonders out loud wondering exactly what he means by
‘original life together’.

“God, I hope so, baby. I hope so.” he
whispers. “I have been waiting and searching a very, very long time
for you. I need my Morna back.”

The sadness that she sees in his eyes is
overwhelming. Without any thought, she reaches out and caresses his
beautiful face. She wants to wipe the sadness away, but she’s not
sure how to do it. She then realizes that he really needs to tell
her the story, so she must be ready to hear it. So she squares her
shoulders, looks him directly in those impossible blue eyes and
says, “Please tell me…” she whispers fearfully. “But can I ask a
couple of questions first?”

“Of course.” He has the ghost of a smile
playing around his lips.

She stares into his eyes trying to frame the
questions. A full minute drags by. “What’s wrong, Morna? Do you not
want to ask me anything?” he asks gently.

“Yes, but the next two questions scare me. I
am building up courage to ask them,” she admits.

He laughs long and low. “You mean the
non-human, vampire thing didn’t scare you?” he asks wryly.